Say Uncle
by Animaltalker
Summary: In Ch 3 We learn a bit more about Uncle Andrew and John's family and see how members of the Squad react.
1. Chapter 1

"When one door closes, another opens," Stabler's new partner opined.

"Right," Munch replied, in that way of his that said he was about to shred whatever the other person in the conversation had just said, and coincidentally the person's ego.

"I've always thought it was a bit more like what the character Maria said in the Sound of Music, 'When God closes a door, somewhere he opens a window.' That saying makes it seem much more like you have to work a bit to escape your woes, finding the somewhere the open window is located, and then wriggling through it , hoping you don't find yourself on a high floor with no fire escape outside that open window," John concluded, happy that he could contradict Elliot's Partner of the Month.

"That's my partner, Mr. Optimistic," Fin said clapping John on the shoulder as he passed by. Fin was no more enamored of Elliot's latest partner than John was. They both wanted Olivia back, and they weren't very subtle about their displeasure with Elliot, Cragen or the "new talent". "You about ready to blow this Popsicle stand, old man?"

"Yeah, are you offering me a ride?" John asked as he picked up his coat from his chair,

"Sure, if you hurry that skinny ass of yours up and get out of here before Cragen can call us in his office and give us something to do."

"Done," John said as he headed toward the elevator.

"They don't like me very much, do they?" Dani Beck observed to her partner.

"Don't take it personally. They're just both missing Olivia and they're mad at Cragen and me. You're just catching some of the fall out. Eventually it's gonna dawn on them that they're being jerks and they'll cut it out," Elliot assured her.

"I'm sure you're right." Dani replied.

"Look, if it really bothers you, I'll talk to them," he offered.

"No, no I can handle it." Dani quickly countered.

_Later, in a tunnel in Central Park_

"So why did you call SVU out, officer?" Beck asked.

"Well, we think we have the perp, but since he's an old homeless guy we thought maybe SVU would be better suited to handle him. I mean don't you guys handle all elderly victims?" the young patrolman asked.

"Yeah well, that's victims not perps," she sighed. "Well, let's see who we've got.

She approached the homeless man who was already cuffed. He was tall for an elderly man, almost six foot and he stood upright, not at all stooped. He was silver haired and bearded. Like most homeless he was dirty and smelled, but no more than any of the rest of them.

"Sir, can you tell me your name?" she asked gently.

The elderly man smiled. "A lovely lady asks me for my name, of course I will tell you. My name is Andrew Munch," he answered in a very charming voice.

She blinked, a bit surprised.

"Are you related to a John Munch?"

"Yes, I have a young nephew by that name." he replied.

"Great, just great, this is really going to endear me to him."


	2. Chapter 2

Munch looked at the homeless man in the interrogation room; he looked like any other person from the alleyways of Manhattan. His grey T-shirt was sweat-stained, his tan pants were beyond dirty, and a battered coat hung off the back of the chair in which the old man was sitting. Body odor still lingered in the squad room from when they'd brought him through.

John stared at the older man, searching the man's face for a sign of his father's younger brother, his favorite relative, the charming young man who used to make him giggle by tickling him, the guy who took him to movies and later to the pool hall. His favorite Uncle Andrew who owned the little repair shop he used to sometimes visit as a kid and later worked in as a teenager. John sighed, he couldn't put this off any longer he opened the door and entered the room.

"Hello Uncle Andrew," he greeted the older man.

"Simon?" his uncle asked in confusion.

Munch wasn't sure what hurt worse, the realization that his uncle must be suffering from Alzheimer's or some similar disorder to have thought that he was his father Simon, Andrew's older brother, or that Andrew in that confused state thought that he, John, looked enough like Simon, his long dead father, to have been him.

"No, Uncle Andrew, it's me Johnny. Dad, Simon has been dead a long time. Look at me. I'm older now than Dad was when he died." John pleaded with his uncle to recognize him.

"Of course, that's right," Andrew said, seeming to digest what John had said. "I wouldn't have had to killed that man if Simon was alive," Andrew added.

Munch's breath caught in his throat. "Uncle Andrew, you shouldn't talk about that, not here, not now," he quickly admonished his elderly relative.

"Don't worry, everything's all right Johnny. I took care of things, just like your father used to take care of things for me, for the others, when we were in the camps. Don't worry that Nazi bastard can't hurt us anymore."

Andrew reached out and patted John's hands, reassuring him, a smile gracing his weathered and whiskered face.

"Wait here, Uncle Andrew, I need to talk to my boss and some other people, and then I'll get you out of here. I'll take you home with me, where you can get a meal, a shower, some clean clothes and a good night's rest," John promised.

"All right, if you insist," Andrew replied and sat waiting patiently.

When Munch exited the interrogation room he found Cragen, Stabler, Stabler's new partner and Casey Novak all congregated outside the observation window.

"So have you all been listening in?" John asked angrily, his eyes fixing on Casey Novak.

The guilty looks on their faces told him they had been. It was Casey who spoke up first. "We had no way of knowing he'd make a spontaneous confession to you," she said by way of defending their actions.

"You had no business eavesdropping in the first place!" John yelled at her.

"John!" Cragen yelled at Munch to get his attention and to try and rein him in a little. "It wasn't Casey's idea to listen in, it was mine. So if you're going to be angry, be angry at me."

"Look, nothing he said is going to be used, it's not like you went in there as a detective to get a statement, and he doesn't have a lawyer. I'm not even sure he was read his rights, and even if he was I'm not entirely sure your Uncle is competent to stand trial, that is, if there's enough evidence to bring him to trial."


	3. Chapter 3

"So you're not charging him?" Munch asked, his voice much calmer, but the set of his jaw and the glare in his eyes, visible despite the tinted lenses of his glasses, suggested he was still angry.

"Not now, but he's definitely a person of interest," Casey answered.

"Is it OK then, if I take him home with me?" he asked his voice sounded controlled, except to all those gathered round him who knew him so well.

"Sure, just keep track of him," she answered.

He rolled his eyes a bit at her, but nodded, and then turned to Captain Cragen.

"Captain, I think I'm going to need a few more days off."

"All right, but John," Cragen paused, considering his words. "I don't have to tell you to stay away from this investigation, do I?"

Munch blew out a breath that signaled his irritation, "I know the regulations as well as anybody."

"Yeah, well knowing and obeying aren't always the same thing are they, John?" As Cragen began cautioning John, Andrew exited the interrogation room.

"Obeying has never been Johnny's strong suit," Andrew said.

"Must be a family trait, I thought I told you to wait in there for me," John said indicating the interrogation room.

"When you get to be my age, you'll learn that they only thing you really listen to is your body, and right now my body says it wants to go pee. So if someone would show me the way to the men's room, I'd appreciate it," Andrew replied.

"Right this way Mr. Munch," Elliot Stabler said, and began escorting the old man out, but not before he looked back at John and grinned.

"John, I meant what I said about not working this case," Cragen reemphasized his earlier point.

"I understand, but I've got to do what I can for my uncle," John replied.

"Doesn't he have other family?" Cragen asked.

"My Aunt Sarah died 8 years ago."

"What about children?"

"Rebekah moved to Chicago years ago when she got married and Andy is a CIA agent, he's stationed in D.C. but there's no telling where he actually is," John answered. He turned his back on Cragen looking in the direction that Elliot and his uncle had gone. He put a hand to his neck as though to ease tension and then shook his head.

"I don't get this, there's no reason for my Uncle to be on the streets. He owned his brownstone and he had a profitable repair business that he sold a few years back. I know Andy helped him invest it so it would provide Uncle Andrew an income for the rest of his life. Even if something happened he knows where I live, he could come to me. He knows that," John said more to himself than to Cragen or Novak or Beck.

"Are you sure about that?" Dani Beck asked. "He seemed kind of confused there for a while, maybe he couldn't remember," she suggested.

Munch looked at the blonde detective icily.

"He's fine, he just needs to get off the street, get a good meal and a decent night's rest, that's all. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to see what's keeping my uncle."

Munch didn't wait for an answer but brushed by Beck hurriedly.

"Wow, if looks could kill, the Munch family would be racking up it's second homicide," Beck said after Munch was out of earshot.

"Beck," Cragen said not sounding to pleased with her, "Let's not get ahead of ourselves, we don't have enough evidence to arraign Andrew Munch for anything more than vagrancy."

"But we are going to investigate this aren't we? I mean, we aren't going to give him a free pass just because he's Munch's uncle are we?" Beck asked.

"No, we investigate this like any other crime, but we're careful, we walk the line. We don't want to look like we're giving him a walk because of John, but I don't want the old man railroaded because we were afraid to look like we were letting our personal feeling get in the way."

"Then don't you think it's best if I'm lead on this investigation? I mean the rest of you have worked with Munch for years, he's like a brother to you. To me Munch is just another smart mouthed detective."

Casey glared at Dani Beck. It was hard enough for her to act professionally in this case given how it set her at odds with a man she had deeply buried feelings for, but with this woman's constant digs at that man, she was coming dangerously close to losing it.

"All right, you're lead, Elliot can work with you, he's worked with Munch as long as I have. Let's see what sort of information we can get on the victim and what sort of background information we can get on Andrew Munch," Cragen decided

"Oh don't get me wrong detective, Johnny was always a good boy, just a bit troubled, but you can't blame him, that's what happens when a boy doesn't have a father around when he's in those difficult teen years," Andrew's voice resonated off the tiles of the men's room as he and Elliot Stabler emerged from it.

"Come on Uncle Andrew, you're going home with me," John said, hoping to pull his uncle away from Stabler before he could do too much damage to his reputation.

"Goodbye Detective, it was nice to met you," the older man said as he reached out and shook Elliot's hand.

"Same here Mr. Munch"- at an upraised finger and a small smile Elliot corrected himself. "Andrew, take care."

As Elliot returned to the squad room he said to no one in particular, "Man, I hope he didn't do it."

"Why?" Casey asked.

"Because he's a nice old man and he obviously loves John like a son. I'd hate to see that get messed up."

Casey didn't say anything, she just nodded.


End file.
